The New Countries
by UndyingSins
Summary: the Hunger Games. A competition that's supposed to punish the humans of Panem for the rebellion, only this year, it doesn't go according to plan when some countries insert themselves into the fray on a quest for something different: The older countries.
1. Chapter 1

**/AN**

**Don't kill me for the lame title!**

**Hello! Before I start the story, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU READ THE FOLLOWING SUMMARY:**

In Panem, the older countries have become nothing but legend, the living bodies of each country living in suspended animation for their safety. No one knows they're there, and no one realizes they ever existed. Except for the new countries that have risen from the ashes of the old, and the militaries of each country.

Panem, on the ruins of North America, is the successor to America in the countries, and wants to make sure that all of them stay where they are. The others aren't so quick to agree, and have started a search to find where the older countries have disappeared to, and bring them back.

The fight is on, and it'll happen in a way no one could ever expect.

**Now, if you've read this, you'll notice I mentioned other countries. The way I've planned this is that you've got Panem, on the ruins of North America, but you've also got new countries where the old ones were, so the human population still spans across the world, only they're run down and aren't living the way they once could.**

**Basically: Yes, the other countries could be considered OCs, or they could be considered expansions on **_**The Hunger Games**_**. I'm not going to pick or choose either way. You can make the decision for yourself.**

**And now, on with the story!**

**AN/**

_Disaster came, and nearly destroyed all the countries. In a last ditch effort to make sure the countries personified were safe and could remain so, they were placed in suspended animation for hundreds of years._

"_It's the red arrow on that elevator you never want to hit," it was whispered, for it was believed that under the living quarters of all the tributes for the Hunger Games was where the countries reside. "I hear that if you press the button and proceed there, you could destroy everything."_

"_The security's so tight once you get down there. You could walk in complete darkness and still be caught on cameras, and if they catch you trying anything, they wouldn't hesitate to shoot you on the spot to make sure whatever's down there stayed safe."_

_Not that anyone in The Capitol or any of the Districts knew what was down there. They thought it was a secret weapon or a bomb shelter. For the hundreds of years they've remained in suspended animation, the countries have remained safe._

_Until today…_

"Will they really die if we release them?" President Snow muttered, looking at each of the countries lined up against the wall, in glass tubes.

"I'm not sure about all of them," the one standing next to him answered. "I wouldn't expect any of the European countries to survive, though. Probably none of the Asian countries either. America would probably be the only one that'd remain safe."

President Snow looked troubled. "Which one is America?"

The brown-haired male shrugged. "Who knows? I only came around after they had been placed into suspended animation."

"But surely you must remember which one is which," President Snow urged.

"Nope," the male answered bluntly. "This is my first time being down here, looking at my predecessors. I didn't even think they still existed, which makes me wonder, when everything got destroyed, how did the humans succeed in getting them all down here, to this one spot?"

President Snow didn't answer his question. "The others, they will be arriving soon, won't they?"

"I've got reason to believe Burginham and Telerus have already arrived."

"I'll let you do whatever you need to too stop them," President Snow said. "For now, the countries' lives are in your hands, Panem."

xxx

"Are you sure they're here?" the blond asked, looking down at the fenced-off town. He was wearing a purple trench coat and blue jeans, with black boots.

The black-haired female beside him sighed and said, "Burginham, they aren't down there, but if my resources are right, then we can reach them from down there." She was wearing a white military uniform with black stripes running down each arm and leg, with tennis shoes. Connected to her belt was a kantana.

"Well, how are we going to get in?" Burginham asked, batting his eyelashes at his companion.

Telerus slammed the hilt of her kantana into his face. "Why is it that out of everyone I had to get teamed up with, it's you? I'm going to be having serious talks with Hwain about that later!"

"You've said that before," Burginham answered. "Why don't you actually do it?"

Telerus muttered, remembering who it was Hwain was descended from. "Because, if his onii-san is anything like we think he is, he's the wrong guy to get the bad side on. So while we get this plan undergoing, you're going to be the one going after Panem."

"Why me? You're the one with the pretty kantana," Burginham complained.

Telerus glared at him. "Because, Onii-san and his friends need us right now, before whatever Panem and its military have planned for them is complete. We need to free them. Now come on." Telerus ran off, heading for the town below.

Burginham followed, finding Telerus stopped in a clearing talking to another blond. This one was a lot stricter and sent out seriousness in waves. "Hey, Ven, about time you showed up," Burginham greeted the country.

Telerus and Venim glared at him. Telerus turned back to Venim, saying, "Thanks for getting us the supplies."

"Hwain wanted me to tell both of you to be safe when you start," Venim stated. "We believe that Panem already knows you guys are here."

"Well, if everything I asked for is in here, then there won't be a problem," Telerus answered, grinning.

Venim nodded, walking off. Telerus, meanwhile, turned around and set the bag on the ground. She pulled out a wig – a brown one that would easily cover her hair – and scissors. "Burginham, come over here," Telerus said, placing the wig on. She didn't even spare a glance in his direction.

"What? No way! You're not cutting my precious locks!" Burginham protested.

Telerus growled, "It's not for your pleasure. We can't risk Panem figuring out who we are sooner than he possibly can. You heard what Venim said about them already expecting us!"

Burginham gave in, walking over and settling on the ground. The snip of scissors and hair falling to the ground filled Burginham's sight for the next few minutes.

"Ok, done," Telerus smiled. She rummaged in the bag, pulling out a mirror.

Burginham looked and nearly fainted. "You've nearly cut all of my hair off!"

"At least you look like a guy now," Telerus smirked. She pulled out some drags and tossed them at him. "Put these on. No complaining!" Telerus pulled a second pair out and hid behind a tree. A few minutes later, she walked back over, completely unrecognizable except for her sparkling brown eyes as she laughed at Burginham.

"That's right, laugh it up," Burginham grumbled, wearing a tattered and very dirty shirt with ripped pants.

Telerus stated, "The shoes need to come off." She pulled out her kantana and said sweetly before Burginham could protest, "Now."

A few minutes later, after hiding their clothes and weapons where Venim could pick them up later, they were walking for the district again. Telerus was explaining the plan to get in to Burginham.

"But why do we have to act like that?" Burginham asked.

Telerus explained, "We've got to make them believe we've been wandering forever. If you can't manage the act, I'll just rough you up until you do."

"I'm going to be fine," Burginham hastily answered. There were a few things he learned: Never disagree with Hwain, don't argue with Newgard, and if Telerus offers to rough you up a bit, she doesn't mean have sex. She means beat you to a bloody pulp. The last one Burginham learned the hard way, and only lived from the fact Hwain found them before Telerus could fully finish him off.

Telerus smiled, saying, "There's a good boy. Now come on. Onii-san and the others might now have much time left."

Burginham didn't need Telerus to beat him up. By the time they reached the fence, he was starving and tired and it would take him forever to get back to his pleasant form from before, with all the branches scratching him and bugs biting him. Telerus didn't appear to be much better off, but Burginham knew better. She was just acting.

"Hey!" Telerus called out when they got within sight of the fence. "Please! Can someone help us?"

"There's a girl over there!" someone from inside called. "A male too!"

Burginham swaggered slightly, from a sudden blood loss. He fell to the ground, hearing Telerus cry out for help as Burginham's consciousness slipped away.

xxx

"And so it begins…"

**/AN**

**Tell me what you guys think! Ok, so like I explained, the countries are new ones kind of descended from the older ones. So the chart goes as follows:**

Panem = America

Telerus = Japan

Burginham = France

Venim = Germany

Hwain = Russia

Newgard = England

**See why Telerus and Burginham were so reluctant to talk to Hwain? And yes, I basically came up with the names myself. Except I'm so bad at coming up with them, I couldn't think of any other names. Help? Just give a name and say what older country they would be personifying in the newer world (and please say if they're male or female!).**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


	2. Chapter 2

Burginham came around, realizing he was lying on a table, with bandages and salves rubbed all over different wounds and bites. He could just see the brunette wig that Telerus was wearing on the edge of his vision.

"Thank you so much for helping him," she was saying to someone. "He's not one to be able to handle such long hikes, and honestly, it's lucky we found civilization before he did faint."

"It's ok," a young girl said from off view. "We do what we can to help."

Burginham groaned, and Telerus swung around. She smirked at him, saying silently, _Nice job._ "Hey, are you all right brother?" she asked instead, kneeling down next to him.

Burginham was about to ask why she was calling him 'brother' when he remembered they were supposed to be acting. Saying they were siblings was probably the easiest explanation Telerus could give to them for why they were traveling together. "I've been better," he grimaced, "Though I do feel much better than before."

"Thank goodness," she sighed in relief. The young girl talking to Telerus appeared, holding a rag. She had blonde hair and blue eyes and was wearing a very nice blouse and skirt.

"I'm back," a voice from the doorway said. Burginham sat up enough to see that the voice belonged to another female, this one had black hair and olive skin. In her hands was some food. "Who're these guys?" she asked, sounding surprised.

Telerus bowed, saying, "We didn't mean to impose. My brother fell unconscious outside and your family said they'd help him."

The girl relaxed, though her face remained a grim mask. "I'm Katniss," she said.

A woman who appeared to be an older version of the younger girl walked in. "We're going to need to be leaving soon," she said. Telerus and Burginham made to move so they could go, but she held them back. "You two aren't going anywhere."

"Then at least let me go," Telerus stated. "Brother can stay here and rest, but I want to see what all the big fuss is about."

"Hey, I'm going also," Burginham protested.

"Are you sure?" the younger daughter asked.

Telerus knelt down and patted her on the head, smiling. "I'm sure Prim. Just from what you've told me, this sounds like something I'm going to have to see to believe."

All the countries knew how Panem held an event once a year that he called 'The Hunger Games'. They just didn't know how it worked or what the deal with it was. It sounded so wrong; it was something Telerus had to check out for herself. Besides, this sounded like the perfect opportunity to try and reach the Capitol, their destination.

"Hey, I'm not getting counted out of it," Burginham protested.

"You need to rest," Prim answered.

"I've been able to heal quite fast," Burginham said, smiling at her. "I think I'll be fine."

Katniss and her mom walked back in. Katniss was wearing a blue dress, while her mother was carrying a red blouse with a white skirt. She handed them to Telerus, saying, "Change into these." Telerus nodded and disappeared into a side room.

Katniss walked over to Burginham and gave him a shirt and pants. These appeared to be used often, and Katniss handed them over with much distain in her posture.

"I'm sorry we don't have anything better for you," the mom said as Burginham looked at them.

He smiled. "No, it's quite all right." _It's better than what Telerus has been making me wear. _Burginham secretly said to himself. Telerus walked back in and Burginham went to change.

"Oh, I'm glad to see those fit you," Katniss' mother said to Telerus.

Telerus was slightly blushing, knowing how many countries would taunt her if they caught her wearing this. Then she remembered how this was supposedly broadcast and knew that she would have some serious butt to kick once she and Burginham got back to base. "Thank you. I haven't been able to wear something this nice for a while." Not true, a few hours ago she was wearing her military uniform.

Once Burginham walked back out looking better in Katniss' clothes than the rags Telerus forced him to wear, they left for the square. Katniss and Primrose separated from the group and walked into what looked like roped cages where other kids around the same age range were congregating.

Telerus and Burginham hung back, lagging behind from the sister's mother. Once they were sure she wouldn't notice they were missing, they slid among the crowd and found themselves in the same area as the kids. Burginham ended up in the group of males at the front, while Telerus was in the same roped off area as Katniss.

_This is going better than expected,_ Telerus thought to herself, but still disgusted Panem _allowed_ something like this to happen.

As the bell rang for two o'clock, a tall man that must've been the mayor walked up to the podium in the center of the platform and explained why the Hunger Games happened every year. Telerus could feel the color draining from her face as the story went on. How could something like this happen in Panem? The strongest country behind Hwain and herself?

As the mayor was finishing up and announcing the last victors from this district, District Twelve, a very fat man stumbled onto the stage and sat down in one of the chairs, trying to hug the female next to him. She stopped him before he could completely hug her and hurried up to the podium.

After she regained her composure from what happened, she called out, "Happy Hunger Games! And may the odds be _ever_ in your favor!"

Telerus couldn't help but smirk when she realized this woman, Effie Trinket, was wearing a wig.

Once Effie Trinket finished her whole speech about how happy she was to be there she called out, "Ladies first" and walked over to a big glass ball. She reached in and pulled out a slip of paper.

Telerus set herself. She had to volunteer since she wouldn't be on any of those slips. She had asked Prim about it beforehand, and Prim explained that after a tribute was chosen, it was possible to volunteer to take that person's place. Telerus looked at Burginham and nodded, saying, _follow my lead._

"Primrose Everdeen!" Effie Trinket called. Telerus froze for a moment as Prim's name bounced around in her head, but shook it off. She had to do it now, before anyone else would be willing too.

Telerus caught sight of Prim and moved to cut her off, saying, "I volunteer to take her place!"

Shock filled the atmosphere. Prim cried, "What? You can't! You'll die!"

"I can't stand by and watch you die either," Telerus said. "Not after helping brother."

Katniss walked over and took Prim's hand, looking at Telerus as if asking, _Why?_

Telerus walked up and stood beside Effie. _Phase 1 complete,_ she though to herself as she looked directly at the camera.

"And what's your name?" Effie asked after the shock passed.

"I'm Bernie Jones," Telerus answered, smiling.

Haymitch toddled up and started saying something, but Telerus tuned it out as she looked at Burginham. He nodded slightly, realizing what he had to do.

Haymitch plummeted off the stage as he fell unconscious. Telerus stared at him for a moment, but quickly shook off the shock of what happened as she set herself again. Effie walked over and pulled out another slip of paper. "Peeta Mellark," she called out.

Before the boy could even move, Burginham stepped forward and said, "I'll volunteer for him."

This seemed to cause even more surprise than Telerus volunteering. District Twelve didn't normally have volunteers, but this year they had two. What's more, it was the two kids that had been rescued from the forest a few hours before. Burginham walked onto the stage and stood there, flashing a winning smile at the crowd.

Telerus managed to stop herself from shaking her head, and instead smiled at the crowd again. "And who would you be?" Effie asked.

"I'm Bernie's older brother, Manuel," Burginham said, flashing another smile.

This time Telerus couldn't help but shake her head as Burginham acted like this.

The mayor started reading some document or another as Telerus and Burginham stood there in front of everyone. Music played once he was done and the two countries shook hands.

They were ushered into the building when the music was finished and directed into two different rooms. Telerus smiled at Burginham before the doors behind them closed.

**/AN**

**For the record, I came up with the rankings at random. That's kind of why it went Hwain, Telerus, Panem instead of something that'd probably make slightly more sense…**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


	3. Chapter 3

As Telerus sat there waiting for the long hour to be up, she bided her time by thinking about what she could do between reaching the Capitol and preparing for these games. If Panem hadn't figured out that Bernie and Manuel Jones were actually the two countries he was trying to keep out, then it should be easy to keep up the act long enough to reach the arena where they could move forward with their plan.

Telerus started as she heard the door open, reaching for where her kantana was before remembering she didn't have it. She looked at the door instead and found the Everdeen family looking at her. She motioned for them to sit down, pulling her legs up to her body and shifting her position at the same time. Prim and her mother sat on the couch with Telerus, and Katniss sat in the chair.

"Why?" Katniss asked after a few minutes of silence. "You didn't have to, yet you did."

Telerus shook her head. "I've got my reasons, but the biggest one was that I couldn't see another family get separated and possibly destroyed." Telerus meant her words. While her country was relatively powerful, it wasn't uncommon to hear of some family being torn apart from death or betrayal or some other reason unknown. That's the way it was in this world, all the countries had hardships that became unbearable after a while. Some have already committed suicide from everything that happened in their country. Telerus had to choke back a sob as the faces of her fallen comrades flashed in her mind for a moment.

The Peacekeepers were back and told the Everdeen family it was time to leave. "Thank you," was the last thing they said before leaving. The next person that came in was hunched over and appeared to have a very bad cough.

Telerus knew better. Once the Peacekeepers had left and they were sure the coast was clear, Venim straightened and walked over, sitting where Prim and her mom were moments before. "Nice acting," he commented.

"Thanks. Now, where are the instructions?" Telerus asked.

"No instructions," Venim stated. "Hwain took a deeper look into this event and learned just what happens. Don't forget how vital it is to keep your cover until you reach the arena."

"How about sparing some of that worry for Burginham?" Telerus said. "I know, I know. Just make sure you get us the stuff so we can do some excavating at The Capitol."

"We're putting the finishing touches on it right now," Venim confirmed. He stood up and got under cover again, leaving when the Peacekeepers came to say the time was up.

Telerus didn't have any other visitors, and as soon as the hour was up, she was taken to a train station with Burginham. She didn't know what happened while Burginham was sitting there, but it seemed to haunt his features, if only slightly. This didn't stop either of them from smiling and waving and just making the crowd fall for them.

When they were on the train and it closed behind them, Telerus relaxed. They walked into one of the rooms and Telerus rolled her shoulders. "The more I see," she muttered, bitter venom filling her voice.

"There's a reason Panem's third on the list of superpowers, but just seeing this, I'm surprised he doesn't spread it to beat out even Hwain," Burginham muttered.

Telerus tensed, muttering, "Yea. If the Capitol is anything I'm expecting it to be, I'm going to be lucky not to break anything."

"You're not breaking me!" Burginham said from the doorway and disappeared behind it.

Telerus chuckled, taking another look around the compartment she was in. She was disgusted, if only at herself for feeling so much more at home around it.

"Onii-san, we're coming," Telerus muttered, rolling her shoulders again before taking a shower and slipping into a regular white shirt with white pants. She nearly got one that looked similar to her military uniform, but remembered at the last moment not too.

She just wished Burginham remembered. He was dressed up in his trench coat and knee-length boots from before. While he hadn't miraculously grown back his hair, it still looked like a clear enough dead giveaway. Telerus sat down at the table and started eating, in small portions and only certain things. She was used to eating rice and _miso_ from home, despite eating with the other countries for ages and having all types of meals.

Oh well, she'd adapt.

Burginham watched Telerus as she picked at her food. He shook his head slightly, knowing that he wouldn't be the only dead giveaway if she didn't change her eating habits.

Once they were done, they moved into another room, where they watched the other tributes get chosen. Telerus didn't pay much attention, rather glaring at Burginham like challenging him to think about who would be good to lay and who wouldn't.

Telerus went back to her room without saying a word, leaving Burginham to deal with Haymitch. Maybe dealing with the drunk would loosen him up a bit.

She wasn't counting on it.

xxx

The next morning Telerus walked straight to the table without bothering to change out of her night clothes. She started picking at the food again, but was trying more of it than the day before.

Burginham sat watching her more than eating, even prompting her to try certain foods at times. Telerus went along with it, knowing the best chance to make it seem convincing was if they could fool the ones looking after them.

Even after Haymitch and Effie joined them for breakfast, Burginham was the only one talking, and that was only if he was trying to prompt Telerus to try something.

"You're not going to survive in the arena long if you're this picky of an eater," Effie finally said.

Telerus glared at her, wishing she still had her kantana so she could show just how well she could survive on her own.

Burginham knew what she was thinking, and quickly covered. "It's not so much as her being a picky eater; it's just that she's one to judge by look, not taste."

_That's pretty much the same thing, _Telerus thought, but nodded agreement. "I'm sure that once I get into the actual arena, I'll find something that'll suit me."

"Well, we'll see about that," Effie sniffed.

Telerus and Burginham glanced at each other, holding back smiles. Telerus looked at Haymitch, who was dead drunk again. It was true that while they were in the arena, their lives would depend on him, much as she hated to admit it, and here he was drinking himself silly.

"Shouldn't you be helping us?" Telerus finally asked him, pushing her plate away. She looked directly at Haymitch. "I don't think being dead drunk is helping anyone."

"Yea, how about giving us some tips for the arena?" Burginham asked. He didn't like the idea of trusting his life to this drunkard when he didn't even trust his life to Venim, who was a lot better versed in protecting the lives of the other countries.

"Here's a tip, stay alive." Haymitch cracked up at his lame joke, and the two officially had it.

They stood up and while Burginham hung back, Telerus grabbed one of the knives and jumped at him, trapping him and keeping the knife on his jugular.

"Don't toy with us," Telerus growled, pressing down.

Burginham walked up and, seeing that Haymitch was scrutinizing Telerus, nodded to her. She released him, drawing the knife away from his neck.

"Looks like I got a fighter," he mumbled. He turned to Burginham and asked, "What do you do?"

"Don't need to do anything," Burginham replied.

Telerus answered, "He's backup in case something goes wrong for me, though that's hardly ever."

"Can you do anything else with that knife?" Haymitch asked her.

Telerus sniffed at it disdainfully. "I like my old sword better, honestly."

They heard coughing and remembered that Effie was sitting there. They looked at her as she coughed, "S-s-sword? How do you keep such a thing?"

"We've got our own schedule and problems," Telerus answered, setting the knife down. "What's important is that no one interferes."

The cabin went dark as they entered a tunnel, no doubt going leading into the Capitol. Telerus left, heading back to her room to change. She did look outside for a moment when the light came back on, and she nearly did break something.

xxx

Telerus can't say she enjoyed sitting there, naked, waiting for her stylist to come in. Actually, she was positively red as her prep team gawked at her.

"Well, since it appears there's nothing to prepare," one of them finally coughed. The prep team left and Telerus tossed a robe on, if only to feel slightly better about her predicament. She could only imagine what Burginham would feel if he were naked in front of his prep team…

Telerus shuddered. Just survive until you reach the room, then you can start having some fun. Telerus grinned savagely as she heard the door open. She turned around and found herself looking at a brown haired male. "Hello, I'm Cinna," he greeted her.

"Hello," Telerus answered, bowing slightly.

"If you could just give me a moment," Cinna motioned to the robe, and Telerus' fingers tightened on it, but they relaxed and she pulled the robe off.

For the next few minutes Cinna stared at her, walking around her, like she was being examined. Finally he seemed to have his fill and said she could put her robe back on. Telerus did so thankfully.

They sat down and had some food while Cinna explained the plan. "Think you can handle fire?" he asked her.

Telerus swallowed a bite of the roll she'd been eating, grinning again. "I'd be pretty pathetic if I couldn't," she answered.

"Good," Cinna said, smiling back.

**/AN**

**Hope you enjoy this chapter! And yes, I'm really that lame and I'm using the same stylists that Katniss and Peeta had. Seems right since it's basically the same Hunger Games, just with different District 12 tributes.**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


	4. Chapter 4

Telerus turned red again when she remembered she was wearing a wig – which just got pulled off as her prep team tried to put her hair up in a simple ponytail.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Cinna asked, looking from the wig to the now black-haired female tribute of District Twelve.

Telerus grabbed the wig, saying, "I can't explain, but it's vital no one realizes who I am. Not yet."

Cinna nodded. "I'm sure we can get this to work." They set to work trying to hide the fact Telerus was wearing a wig better than she did, which ended up in having the wig actually clipped it to her hair. Once it was securely in place, it was tied in a ponytail.

Telerus was looking at herself, so glad that her prep team didn't ask questions about the wig and actually helped her keep it secured.

Now, she was standing on the chariot with Burginham. They were wearing matching flame outfits, and neither looked disturbed. One thing was for certain: They were absolutely winning over the crowd. Everyone wanted Telerus to greet them, to see Burginham's winning smile flash in their direction.

It may have all been a ruse for the two countries, but they were the expert team of infiltration. Burginham handled wooing anyone that came along and making everyone fall in love with him, while Telerus put her brains in engineering to work and dealt with short circuiting systems and cutting off live feed to reach their goal.

Once the Opening Ceremony was done, Portia and Cinna ran up, congratulating the two on such a splendid performance. They headed to the elevator, where Telerus hit the number Twelve. But not before hesitating when she saw a red arrow pointing downwards. Burginham noticed her face loose it's color for a moment and her hesitation before she hit the Twelve, but no one else seemed to notice.

Once they reached the floor the tributes would be on, Telerus set off straight for her room. Burginham followed her and they talked in hushed voices about the arrow until dinner, trying to figure out what it meant.

When dinner did come around, Telerus remained silent, hiding different things in her pockets when no one was looking for her to use later. She would have to place a bug in that elevator, if just to find out what that arrow meant.

xxx

"No one saw you come up?" Venim asked as he handed Telerus the supplies from the chopper.

"Positive," Telerus answered. She took the bag and smiled when she saw all her equipment inside. "This, this is something I can work with. Tell Hwain we're on standby until we can find out what that arrow means. I've already set up my bug."

Telerus was standing on the roof of the Training Center. She made sure that all the cameras had been set to run on video feed from a few hours before while Venim handed her the rest of the stuff she needed for her to play her part out.

"Just remind Burginham not to do anything during training," Venim said.

Telerus nodded. She turned and went back to her room, where she started assembling bugs that sat around her room as she made counterparts. In no time at all, she had an entire army of miniature robotic bugs at her disposal. They looked spider-like, with one big eye where dozens of miniature eyes would normally be. The only difference between spiders and these mechanical ones was that these only had six legs. Telerus picked up a controller and had them set out. She hid the controller and fell asleep.

xxx

The next three days were spent waiting for word from one of Telerus' bugs about the elevator. As people had been entering and leaving the elevator from District Twelve's floor, more and more bugs made their way in and positioned themselves where they wouldn't be noticed, some ready to take out the cameras when necessary, for when someone showed up and used that infamous red arrow.

In the meantime, Burginham was making a splash with the tributes from Districts 1, 2, and 4. Telerus just stood there at the sword station picking them up, weighing them in her hand for inspection, and setting them back down. Some she would give a few swings, but she didn't bother with much else.

On the third day while the tributes were waiting to be called out to show their skills to the judges, Telerus wasn't disappointed. She heard a little beeping and hid in a corner, looking at a small device on her wrist. She pulled up a hologram view of her elevator bug and found Panem standing there. He walked out and she ordered the other bugs to follow him. They did so quickly and quietly. She switched her view to one of the bugs and found them going down a very long passage. They started splitting away and positioning themselves on cameras as well, but the one she attached her vision to followed Panem all the way down to a door. She watched him key in a password and made sure the bug positioned itself on the pad before cutting the transmission.

Once it was only her and Burginham left, Telerus activated the bugs in the room to have any possible cameras run on feed they had without the audio while she explained what she saw to Burginham.

"Nice going, girl, we're nearly there," Burginham muttered.

Telerus nodded. "I've gotten the calculations of the distance of that tunnel and how far underground it is, along with the direction."

"Where does that place it?"

"Where Panem keeps the arenas for the Hunger Games," Telerus answered. "I won't be able to tell which one until we actually get there."

Burginham was called out at that moment, leaving Telerus alone. She sat down, grinning as she thought about just how close they were to finding the old countries.

But for right now, she'd just have to impress these Gamekeepers. She was called out and Telerus walked over to the sword station, looking among the swords there for the one she knew would be there by now.

She was not disappointed. Venim and his group pulled through when she found her kantana among the swords. She picked it up and walked to the center of the room, pulling it out of the sheath. She launched into a pattern of cutting and slicing and just going all over the room. It was easy to tell how fast she caught the Gamekeeper's attention with her lightning quick moves and skill. She finished by slicing a human puppet hanging there to ribbons, before turning back to the Gamekeepers.

They must've been impressed because, while she was slightly breathing heavy, she hadn't broken a sweat, and such a pattern must be hard on a body.

Telerus was dismissed and she placed her kantana back among the swords. She didn't want to part with it, but she knew Venim would pull another one and get it into the arena for her.

When Telerus made it back to the floor, she greeted everyone and talked for a while about what happened and how dull the whole thing actually was. Burginham agreed and when it was finally time to televise the scores, Telerus couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Burginham's picture showed up with a three flashing underneath. Telerus started laughing and asked, "What did you do?"

"I sang to them," Burginham answered.

Telerus snorted, looking back in time to see her picture with a nine underneath.

xxx

"Now it begins," Telerus muttered. It was the dead of night when she entered the elevator. She hit the arrow that had been bugging her and proceeded downwards. While she waited to go the five hundred plus meters underground, she pulled up a hologram on her wrist device and sent off a quick transmission to Hwain.

Telerus activated the bugs to cut out the cameras and proceeded down the hallway. She made it to the pad where the bug was sitting there like a miniature guard dog. It jumped up and entered the code, and Telerus muttered, "Thank you Panem."

She went inside, not sure about what she would find.

**/AN**

**Cliffhanger. Sorry, but this really seemed like such a good place to stop.**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


	5. Chapter 5

"Well, now, this is interesting," Cinna muttered. He knew something was up with Bernie Jones from the moment her wig had been pulled off, but now she disappeared in the middle of the night to somewhere unknown. From the way she's been acting these past few days, it was easy to guess that she was hiding something, and she scolded Manuel like a comrade instead of a brother. While he was working on her interview dress, he just wanted to let her know that he was there if she needed someone to talk to.

The next morning Burginham and Telerus had their day divided between Effie and Haymitch. While Telerus went to her room with Effie, where she was no doubt going to get stuck in a dress, Burginham went to the sitting room with Haymitch.

Haymitch was impressed with Manuel. He didn't even need to tell the kid what angle to come from, he just started it off and every question that Haymitch fired off was answered with a winning smile and an amazing response. He had to admit, while his sister was fierce in fighting, he could be able to win over the crowd instantly.

The afternoon spent with Bernie wasn't as easy. Bernie avoided more questions than she would answer them, but Haymitch finally worked her around to where he could get her to act fierce and witty at the same time. He just had to hope it would be enough. Cinna had explained to him how she had disappeared the night before, but no one seemed to know where. No one was willing to prompt her, either.

That night was spent with Telerus programming her bugs to come off of various cameras that she wouldn't need hacked anymore, but left the ones in the elevator and underground passage, along with her room. Soon, the bugs were sitting around her in a circle looking up expectantly. She held out her hand and the bugs started climbing up her body, expertly jumping into a bag while curling up into a little circular ball that hid at the bottom. Once all of them were in there, Telerus closed the bag and hid it with her controller, falling asleep a few minutes later.

One thing she wouldn't admit was that her dreams had been haunted by the room where the older countries were, but with it came a feeling of triumph that she completed her goal. Now they just had to get into the arena to finish up.

xxx

Cinna dismissed his prep team from Bernie's room while he helped her put the finishing touches on. He noticed her hand slid to her wrist were a white bangle was and she seemed to hit something. "Ok, you can ask me what you want now," Bernie said.

Cinna was perplexed Bernie knew that he wanted to talk with her privately. "Where were you two nights ago?" he asked her while he fixed her wig.

"I can't answer that to its fullest, but it's for the good of everyone," Bernie answered. Cinna noted her hand clenched into a fist as she said this. "Inside and outside."

Telerus knew from the moment her wig came off in front of Cinna this would come, but she couldn't let him know. Not yet. Not until they got into the arena, where the only person's line of fire they would be in was Panem's.

It was time to go after Cinna and Bernie played Twenty Questions, the majority of which Bernie avoided answering in some way.

Burginham was ready to win over everyone in the crowd at the interviews. Where he lacked in fighting skills, he made up for in charming anyone. As the interviews slid past with each person from each District had their interview with the host, a person who had his hair dyed powder blue by the name of Caesar Flickerman.

When Telerus' turn finally came, she stood up and walked over without any hesitation, making sure that when she was talking with Caesar her posture didn't fall into her regular sullen one. Dead giveaway to Panem, that was for sure.

"Hello Bernie," Caesar greeted her when she reached him. "How has your stay in the Capitol been so far?"

"Oh, it's been splendid. I mean, outside of nearly knocking myself unconscious trying to keep up with Effie's demands," Telerus beamed. She winked in Effie's direction, calling out, "Don't let that worry you, though!"

She could tell she had the crowd hooked. They were laughing and cheering at her.

"Unconscious? That's not good! Hey, Effie, why don't you let up on the poor kid some?" Caesar called out. Everyone laughed again as the cameras switched to a view of Effie, who waved them off, but smiling nonetheless.

"So how does it feel to be coming here to compete with your brother?" Caesar asked her.

"Well," Telerus grinned, "We had already agreed that if one of us was coming, both of us were. I really hope he doesn't regret the decision now." Telerus winked in Burginham's direction, who grinned at her in return. "Nope, I don't think so."

"Doesn't look that way, but we can find out what he thinks later. So, how'd you manage to score that nine in the training?" Caesar asked.

To everyone, it looked like Bernie was shaking her head, but to Burginham, she was shaking off the will to reach for an invisible weapon to show it to them. "I don't know if I can talk about it, but all I can say is that it's not wise to count me out just yet."

"Well, it's a lot better than what your brother got, that's for sure," Caesar stated.

"He never was one for fighting," Telerus said, sliding in another joke. "Whenever we've been trapped in some situation or another, he'd be content just lying down and dying. I've had to drag him all over the place just to make sure he stays alive."

Everyone laughed again. Telerus didn't know how well she was doing, but it must've been great because she hasn't been shot at yet. Hwain had explained that this would be the biggest hurdle for them to overcome before being able to complete their task.

The buzzer for Bernie's three minutes was up. She thanked everyone, giving them a wink before returning to her seat as Manuel walked over to Caesar.

"Well, well. Your sister certainly took a few stabs at you," Caesar started off. "Is there anything you'd like to reply to before we actually start?"

"Just one," Burginham replied. He smiled at Telerus and said, "She'd be a lot worse off without me."

Bernie wove the remark away like it wasn't anything, like she didn't believe it at all. Manuel turned and continued, "But I can say that it's good to see that the Capitol has changed her in some way."

"Oh? Mind sharing?" Caesar asked.

"She's lost some of her temper," Burginham laughed. "When we were younger, you couldn't say one wrong thing around her if you didn't want her to snap. Her temper was shorter than my pinky finger." He held up part of his pinky for effect, and everyone laughed.

Manuel flashed the crowd one of his winning smiles and everyone absolutely fell for it.

"Oh, you'd better stop before you start making me swoon," Caesar commented, fanning himself with the hand that wasn't holding the microphone.

Manuel smiled at him and said, "I'll try not to."

"Ladies and gentlemen, all I can say is that while this one didn't rate very high in the scores, he's a heartthrob. Wouldn't you ladies out there agree?" Caesar called out. The response from the crowd was immediate and very positive.

The last buzzer sounded and they wrapped up, Telerus and Burginham heading to their rooms. They talked to each other in the elevator, congratulating the other at how well they did, and just really enjoying each other. They agreed that while Cinna may not have been fooled by Telerus, they absolutely won over the Capitol.

And it was easy to tell when they watched the interviews again. At every joke Telerus or Burginham told, every turn in the conversation, the audience responded in a way that none of the other district tributes could even hope to copy.

"Like a supernatural force at work," Effie sniffed, smiling at both of them. She didn't see Bernie tense for a moment, but proceeded to scold them one last time before leaving.

The tributes said their goodbyes to Haymitch and talked to each other along the way to their rooms. Before they turned in, though, Telerus and Burginham ran over the plan for movement in the arena one last time.

Manuel bid his little sister goodnight and the two fell into deep sleep. This would normally be the time where tributes would be worried about the next day, but the two were just looking forward to throwing this whole thing back in Panem's face.

xxx

Cinna walked into Bernie's room to find her up, doing a few stretches on one side of the room. "Come on, it's time we're heading out," Cinna said.

Bernie nodded and they left without saying another word.

When the duo finally reached the arena, they sat their talking to each other for a while. Cinna didn't mention it, but as soon as the Gamekeepers found out that Bernie had managed to keep her bracelet with her the whole time, she'd probably wind up dead.

But Bernie grinned at him like she knew what he was thinking, and trying to reassure him that she'd be fine. Cinna didn't recall seeing her hand move to the bracelet, but Bernie said, "Help me loosen the wig a little bit. I'm going to ditch it once I get inside."

"Are you going to tell me why yet?" Cinna asked, chuckling.

"No, but make sure that you're watching the start so you can see," Bernie replied, grinning. Cinna could tell she had something up her sleeve, so he removed everything that was keeping her wig in place and helped her place it on her head again.

"You're not scared at all?" Cinna asked her while they were waiting.

Bernie shrugged. "Why should I be? Fear isn't the best emotion to have in the face of a situation, so it's best to not have any at all."

Not a moment too soon, the call for entering the arena came. Cinna and Bernie walked over to the launch pad. The glass slid down over Bernie and before she rose up, she gave Cinna one last reassuring smile.

Then she was gone.

**/AN**

**Yes, I've been following the first book off and on. But once they get into the actual arena, everything is free lancing. And sorry, but we won't be seeing much of the canons for a while, but I'll try to write in their reactions to certain events.**

**R&R Please!  
AN/**


	6. Chapter 6

"Let the seventy-fourth Hunger Games begin!"

Telerus looked around the ring of tributes until she found Burginham. She grinned evilly, winking at him. He smiled back, but these were knowing gestures. They've succeeded in their mission to get inside; and Telerus already had the location of this arena downloaded into her wrist communicator. She wondered what Panem was thinking by placing this exact arena above where the old countries were. Then again, seventy-four arenas probably started taking a toll on the landscape, and it was starting to look suspicious that they refused to build on this spot.

Not that it mattered. It was what they had been hoping for, and they were going to take it to their advantage.

Exactly ten seconds before the gong sounded, Telerus reached up and gripped the wig. Five seconds. She pulled it off, letting her black hair fall in waves. She grinned and winked, like saying, _Your move._

The gong sounded. Telerus was off in an instant, heading for the pile sitting around the Cornucopia. By the time the other tributes realized she was wearing a wig, she was pulling out her kantana and jumping on top of the Cornucopia. She ran the length and jumped off the other edge, calling out for Burginham to follow her.

xxx

How could this have happened? Panem personified slammed his fist into one of the control panels as he realized that Telerus and Burginham had worked their way in there right under his nose. What's more was that Telerus had her weapon. Who knew what else she managed to get in? Or what else Hwain and Venim had set up for them in there.

The Gamekeepers seemed just as puzzled, but also fearful for what Panem might do. "Dammit," he hissed. He left the room and headed to another one. There was a single guard watching over a few screens. He was tapping one of them that had short-circuited.

"Again?" Panem asked. Ever since the night of the training scores, the cameras have been going crazy. He would go and fix them and when he came back up, they'd be working, but when he checked on them again, they would've short circuited again.

He came to the realization of why they were short circuiting. "Damn her." He stormed outside and shouted at one of the guards, "Get me the video feed for the Training Center ever since the tributes arrived! I want every floor, from the training room to the roof, and the elevators!" He snapped at another guard, "Warn President Snow that we've been infiltrated and send the army after the District Twelve tributes."

"But sir, is it wise to send our army in?" the guard asked.

Panem said, "What they're after has been placed under my protection. Now get the army there so those two can't reach it! What?" Panem snapped to the boy that tapped his shoulder. He was one of the newer ones.

The boy shuddered, saying, "You're going to want to see this."

Panem was guided back to the room where he pointed at one of the screens. It was on replay. Telerus and Burginham were standing in the field waving at Panem, Telerus giving her telltale wink and Burginham his smile, as if taunting him. Then both of them blew a kiss at him before heading for the forest. This wasn't what disturbed Panem, though. Somehow they had managed to grab hold of their military uniforms and were wearing them like it was completely natural. _This is nothing more than another battlefield. Are you willing to join us? _The outfits seemed to say to him.

The sound of a chair breaking was apparent. Those two made Panem mad now, and those in the room were going to be the ones suffering for it.

xxx

Throughout the districts, everything was falling into disarray. The two tributes that captured everyone's heart and soul had turned out to be frauds, and were now running loose in the arena where their own tributes were. No one knew why they were there, but they could only hope the other tributes from their district would be safe.

Those in District Twelve were the ones in the greatest shock. They watched the launch off, wishing Bernie and Manuel the best of luck, that they'd survive when they didn't even live in District Twelve yet willingly took the places of the two children that would've gone instead. Now, they realized that they had their own goals towards this, and that this was just another step. While everyone was still thankful they didn't have to watch little Primrose or Peeta Mellark die, they still felt used.

Katniss was the only one that seemed to realize what Bernie's words when they parted meant. She did have her own reasons, and part of that must've been getting into the arena. They could've chosen any district to take the tribute places, yet they chose District Twelve. It was true District Twelve didn't receive much attention from the Capitol, but she was still confused about who they've been hiding from the whole time, and what they've really been after.

xxx

Cinna was the only one that appeared to be pleased. He understood Bernie's request now, and was glad he complied to it, if only a little bit. They sent the rest of the tributes into disarray trying to figure out what happened. This wasn't the Hunger Games anymore; this was two people looking for something and twenty-two other kids unlucky enough to be trapped in the same area.

So now the only questions were what they were after, and were they the bad guys? Just from what they had seen of Bernie and Manuel, they didn't appear to be bad guys, but Cinna had seen Bernie's technological use for himself. If the Gamekeepers weren't expecting Bernie to be hiding anything else up her sleeve, or down the rest of her body, they were sorely mistaken.

xxx

"Hwain," Telerus said, pulling up the hologram on her wrist communicator. "We're in. Did you enjoy our start off?"

"I did," the leading country said. He smiled at them. "Everyone was pleased. Move forward with removing the shield so we can drop in Espionage."

"Roger that," Telerus stated. "We'll get started right away."

"I look forward to seeing the results," Hwain told them, the hologram disappearing.

Telerus sat down on a nearby rock, placing her hand on the rock. Swarms of mechanical bugs ran down her arm and crowded the place.

Burginham raised an eyebrow. "You've got enough?" he asked.

"More than enough," Telerus replied. "Scout out the area. We need to make sure we're safe while I tinker with these."

Burginham nodded, and walked off.

He came back carrying some food. It was apparent the food came from the Cornucopia. "I ran across some kids running recon carrying them. I explained to them as much of the situation as I could and they gave me this in return. They said they'd warn the rest of them."

"Great, I'm just about done here," Telerus said. There were still bugs surrounding her, but not as many as before. Sitting on her lap was now a glove, the same shade as the bugs. It would fit her hand perfectly, going up to her elbow. It was easy to tell where the bug's eyes were used. In addition to being used for various buttons, they were on each knuckle were a tiny device came together that would destroy the shield. Telerus closed one of the panels on the glove and slid it onto her hand.

"I received the go ahead from Espionage while you were gone," Telerus explained. "We can proceed with dropping the shield, but we'll have to find the edge of it."

"Then let's get moving. We can eat along the way," Burginham said. They set off, all of the little bugs following after them.

Espionage wasn't a country. Espionage was a group of countries, led by the ever infamous Venim. They had realized that Panem was having the Capitol's army sent in to deal with Telerus and Burginham, so they had to push everything ahead of schedule to make sure the other kids remained safe.

"I really hope you warned them about this," Telerus said when they finally found the edge.

Burginham nodded. "I told them to get everyone in the shell of the Cornucopia when they got back, and explain from there. I also gave them plenty of a head start. They should be fine."

"Then stand back," Telerus said. Burginham backed up while Telerus charged forward. The moment she was closed enough, she used the momentum in her charge to help send her punch through the shield.

The moment the glove impacted the shield, there was a crack of lightning, along with a purple flash across the whole arena, before it dimmed and faded.

"Espionage, move in," Telerus called out.

Venim dropped down next to them. "Nice going. I've got Russ keeping the shield disabled until we can drill down. Have you got the exact location of the room yet?"

"It's back where the Cornucopia is," Telerus answered. They made their way back to the Cornucopia and found two familiar, and very confused, faces trying to help the kids out.

Burginham walked up, grinning at them. "Don't worry. They mean what they say. They're our friends. They'll take all of you home."

The little girl from District Eleven hesitated, but stood up and walked over to one of the brothers.

"I'm Rue," she said.

"I'm Eman," the red-headed Italian country greeted her. "That's my brother, Vone. Don't worry; we've got friends that'll protect you all the way back to your homes."

"And even after that," Telerus stated. "If what I'm guessing is right, then we've just made him very upset." She smirked, looking at the top of the shell, finishing, "Isn't that right?"

Sitting there with a gun in hand was Panem.

**/AN**

**Ooooo. Mysterious. What'll happen to the other tributes now that Panem has shown up to the party? And I finally got the new Italy brothers in! 3 Oh, and Russ is Prussia, while Eman is North Italy and Vone is South Italy. Told you I suck at names.**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


	7. Chapter 7

"I've already told you it's best if they remain the way they are," Panem stated, jumping off of the conch shell to stand in front of Telerus.

Telerus, compared to Panem, was a whole head shorter, but that didn't stop her from staring at him defiantly. "So what? For you to turn Onii-san and everyone into your puppets?" There was the glint of metal and Panem just managed to dodge Telerus' kantana. "You've got to be kidding me!"

In the background, Eman and Vone were helping the rest of the tributes out of the arena and taking them back home. By the time they got the tributes out and on their way back to the districts, the fight was really starting to heat up.

"You're going to need to do better than that," Panem smirked. He pointed his gun at her, but felt something stab into his hand.

"I told you I'm backup," Burginham stated, smiling. He was pulling back a sword that was covered in blood, the same that was gushing out of Panem's hand.

"Hey," Venim told Panem. "Shouldn't you be heading back to your base? Hwain and Newgard mentioned something about playing with fire while they were there."

Panem didn't look pleased, but he snapped his fingers and the three countries found various guns and rifles pointed at them. "I'll be back," Panem told them before disappearing.

Telerus grinned, looking at each soldier as they kept their guns concentrated on them. She called out, "Those of you that want to stay alive better be gone by the count of three. One." She readied her kantana, looking around. "Two." As her eyes fell on one of the soldiers, the tension in the air was becoming apparent. "Th-" She didn't even finish saying it when all of the soldiers were tripping over each other trying to get out of there.

"That was easy," Burginham said.

"Well, I did get a nine," Telerus pointed out, smiling. She told Venim, "Right over there, about 500 meters down."

Venim whistled. "No wonder it took this long to find them. I'll call in Yomn (China) and Silvn (Austria) right away to start with the digging."

"Um, that's where I've got to protest," Telerus said. "I'm sorry, but trying to dig 500 meters is an awful long time. Panem might get something up his sleeve by the time they get five meters down, and we can't hold him off forever."

"Then what do you have in mind?" Venim asked.

Telerus held up her glove and all the bugs dispatched from it. From the amazed looks on Venim's and Burginham's faces, this wasn't something they were expecting. "I've already had these guys get started. I've even got some inside digging their way up."

"You really did think ahead," Venim stated.

"Well, when I saw them, I knew that was the major hole in our plan," Telerus said, smiling at the memory of just seeing them.

"What were they like?" Burginham asked.

"Oh, just amazing," Telerus said. "We had heard of how great they were before the world came to ruin, but they even showed how well their lives were from everything that happened. They…they were just like we had imagined."

Venim and Burginham grinned at Telerus' description. While it wasn't specific, it was enough to give them hope. "How long until the bugs are done digging?" Venim asked her.

"They're going to be busy for a while yet, but if we could get help in here, it would help them out a tremendous lot," Telerus answered.

Venim nodded. The next few hours were spent digging up everything they could, and as time wore on they were gradually joined by more and more countries wanting to see their siblings.

There was a bang close by that sent everyone flying backwards. The army had returned, and started firing at them. No doubt they were more afraid of Panem than they could be of any other country.

"We're nearly there!" Telerus called out. "We can do it!"

They split into two groups, and another explosion above the hole caused it to cave in, leading to complete blackness. This caused the army to stop, and freak when Telerus waved at them before jumping down the hole. Burginham and Venim followed. Then the army found themselves surrounded by the rest of the countries, fighting for their lives.

xxx

Telerus landed safely and jumped out of the way in time to avoid Burginham and Venim dropping in on top of her.

The latter two countries were about to start arguing with each other when seeing the room they were in stopped them. While there was a green glow that cast everything into a sickly look, it allowed them clear views of each country before them.

The three countries just sat their looking at them for a while, their old doubts starting to bug at them: If they released the countries, would they really die? If not, would they be upset at the new ones for releasing them? But also thinking about what they could teach and help the new countries was the driving force that led the young countries this far.

A hologram suddenly showed up on Telerus' wrist device, but it was hard to see and even harder to understand before cutting out.

xxx

Panem had just sent some of his army on Hwain and Newgard, beating both of them to a bloody pulp. Now that he was looking at the room where the countries where, he was just about to snap. Without thinking, he called out, "I want those three destroyed! Set the others loose!"

"But they're not ready yet!" someone protested.

"I don't care how ready they are! We can't risk those three being the ones to free them!" Panem screamed.

The sound of the button being hit and watching the liquid drain out of the tubes holding each country was what caught everyone's attention. Then Hwain chuckled from behind Panem and said, "Your rash decisions have always gotten the best of you, and now it's all over."

xxx

"What's going on?" Telerus asked as she watched the tubes empty.

"An unplanned complication," Venim stated. "I didn't think Panem would actual be willing to do this."

Burginham agreed. "That seemed too crazy, even for him."

The only sound after the liquid suspending the countries in place had emptied was the tubes pressurizing and opening up. "Guys, did any of you think we'd actually have to fight them?" Telerus stumbled.

Panem had really worked them into a corner. The countries looked around, coming to rest on the three younger ones.

"This is bad!" Burginham cried. "Bad, bad, bad, bad!"

"Hold yourself together!" Venim told him.

Telerus shot back, "But we can't hurt them!"

"We don't have much choice!" Venim answered, pulling out his gun and pointing it at a blond-haired blue-eyed country. Telerus didn't know who it was, but she twisted the gun out of Venim's hand before he could shoot.

"Behind you!" Burginham cried as he parried another country's sword.

Telerus spun around, barely managing to block another kantana. It was with horror that she realized this was her older brother.

"No, oh god no," Telerus muttered, slipping. She fell to the floor and watched as he got ready to swing his kantana down on her. "No! Onii-san!"

He froze. Kiku Honda didn't realize what was going on, just that these three were trying to destroy everything. But…maybe that wasn't true. His hands started shaking as this young girl called him older brother, like he called China so long ago. Now that he got a closer look at her, he realized how much she looked like him.

Everything came back in a rush. Where they were, why they were there, what happened.

_He woke up to the sounds of screams that had found their ways into his dreams. He ran outside and found that the sky had turned red and everything was being torn apart._

"_Japan!" Feliciano cried out, running up. "What happened? Why's everything like this?"_

"_I don't know!" Honda replied._

_Ludwig showed up and told them that they were heading for a safe house of Alfred's to talk about the situation further. All the countries had gathered, regardless of if they still had land or were conquered or were allies with America. Even Alfred looked scared about what happened._

"_What's going to happen to us?" the question finally asked, and as it settled in everyone's minds, it caused them to cry out in grief and frustration that they couldn't do anything to stop this._

_Then Alfred's boss showed up and told them that there was an area ready for them so they could survive. Everyone went with him._

_The last thing he remembered before going into suspended animation was looking Feliciano in the eye and reassuring him that everything would be fine._

Honda looked around, realizing it wasn't just the girl. The two males behind her looked like Ludwig and Francis. Honda started stopping each country in turn, helping them remember what happened.

When it became apparent that they weren't going to die, Telerus, Venim, and Burginham relaxed. They could imagine Panem being furious right now. He'd probably try to take it out on Hwain and Newgard, but if everything went according to plan, they would've been long gone by now.

"What did you say?" Burginham asked, looking at each of the countries.

Telerus shook her head. This had been such an unexpected turn in their luck she had to wonder if it was some kind of trick.

Finally, Honda came back over to the three countries and asked, "Who are you?"

"I'm Telerus," she answered. "These are Burginham and Venim."

Everyone started to greet them, asking them questions, which they answered to the best of their abilities. The door behind them opening made everyone's attention turn back to their predicament.

"Hwain! Newgard!" Venim called out, waving.

"Well, Panem's not to happy, but that's to be expected," Newgard stated.

Telerus tensed. "It's best if we get out of here," she said. She tapped a button on her wrist communicator and a ladder of bugs fell down. "Come on."

"We're five hundred meters below the surface!" Burginham exclaimed. "You're expecting us to climb that?"

"No," Telerus retorted. "Because I've got over a thousand meters of bugs making up that ladder."

They started taking the bugs to the surface, and once everyone was there finding the new countries, everything was merry for the moment.

Everyone except Alfred (and Matthew, but even now he's forgotten). He had yet to see someone that had taken over his place, and made him wonder what was wrong.

"No!" Panem cried out. "You're not going to win this! You're not!" He seriously seemed to be on his last string, and he was shaking so much it was impossible for him to hold the gun, much less point it at anyone.

Telerus approached Panem, motioning Alfred to follow her. She gripped Panem's shoulders. "You're not alone anymore," she said. "None of us are." She smiled at Alfred and motioned to Panem.

Alfred looked at Panem, patting him on the shoulder. Panem looked up, still shaking. Alfred realized it was more out of sadness than anger, and he smiled. "Don't worry. None of you are being left alone."

No one was sure what happened, but the next moment found a sobbing Panem hugging Alfred for dear life, the gun lying forgotten on the ground.

**/AN**

**Even I'm touched by the ending, and I wrote it!**

**R&R Please**

**AN/**


	8. Epilogue

_Old civilizations fell, and new ones rose. The new nations suffered hardships and have started searching for a way to help everyone._

_Among these new nations, there was Panem. Panem was the first one to suffer from revolt, though none of the other countries realized it until they traveled to Panem in an attempt to save their ancestors. They thought Panem had lost his head to power, but after the old countries were released, the new countries learned that he was just lonely. And suffering. Suffering from the fact that he couldn't do anything to stop these Hunger Games that had been running for so long. For seventy-four years, Panem had been trying to find something or someone that could stop them, but to no avail. In a last ditch effort, he turned to the very nations he was sworn to protect, trying to have them do the job for him._

_Then the new countries came and Panem felt everything get destroyed around him. He thought that now that the old countries had been released, he would get left behind in a new age, having to suffer watching more Hunger Games come and go, without any way to save the children of twenty-three families each year._

_Only that didn't happen. Alfred Jones welcomed Panem like a little brother, and even after the other nation's mission had been completed, they stayed and helped Panem for a while yet. When Alfred and Panem could handle everything for themselves, the other nations bid them farewell, but promised they would meet again._

"Onii-san, aren't you ready yet?" Telerus called from the front room of their house.

Honda smiled; glad to see that she had gotten use to being around him. At first she was just trying to hard to make sure everything stayed straight and make him feel at home. Now the government was starting to think for itself instead of asking for her help at every turn, and they had been able to agree that they were able to go to the first World Summit since the start of The Hunger Games seventy-five years ago. Because it was the first one of a new world, all of them agreed it would be best to have everyone there, to welcome in the new age.

Though the older nations still kept in contact with each other. Their new counterparts were often a topic of conversation, and they learned just how bad this new world was. Even the Vargas Brothers, who were no doubt the most carefree countries of them all, had their hands full.

"Ok, let's go," Honda said, walking up to Telerus. She was wearing a kimono with a floral pattern on it and her hair was held back in a braid. She smiled at him and they left.

xxx

Francis watched as Burginham and Telerus greeted each other. Burginham's hair was starting to go back to its original length, but it would be a while yet before it would be impossible to tell it suffered the wrath of scissors. Hwain and Venim joined them, and it was easy to tell Burginham and Telerus gained a sort of different air around them that slightly relaxed with Panem coming up, but not completely.

"Everyone here?" Alfred asked after a little while. All of the older countries were sitting, while their younger counterparts stood behind them. Everyone but Matthew was accounted for, but he was forgotten again as they started.

Everything was looking up. Pacts between the new nations were already being made and, with the help of their older counterparts, their countries were coming back into order.

_Panem. He was the one with the greatest change. With Alfred there to help him, Panem called out his own government and stopped the Hunger Games for good. District Thirteen came out of hiding and all of the Districts had started growing into sprawling cities. For a long time, Panem commanded the top spot for the best nation, but everyone else had started catching up to him._

_The new world shouldn't be a bad thing, and I know for sure it's not. This new world is just getting started, getting back on it's feet, but with all the hard work we've been able to put into restoring it, it shouldn't take much longer for everything to go back to the way it was._

xxx

_Katniss,_

_ It's good to know your family has been doing much better now that the Districts have been receiving more help. It's also great news to hear your mother became the head of the hospital. Wish her my best!_

_I'm so happy to claim that everything here has started to calm down. I've seen so many families be reunited it's been painful. You really should try to come with your family sometime. Onii-san and I would be happy to have you guys. Just don't let Manuel know that we've invited you or he'll be on me before you could say rice._

_Bernie Jones_

**/AN**

**Hope you guys enjoyed reading!**

**R&R Please!**

**AN/**


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